Machine gun



Feb. 13, 1923.

. E. L. A. PAUMIER.

MACHINE GUN.

FILED MAR.5. 1918.

4 SHEETSSHEET X.

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Feb. 13, 1923. 1,444,849. E. L. A. PAUNHER.

MACHINE GUN.

FILED MAR. 5, I918 4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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Feb. 13, 1923.

E. L. A. PAUMIER.

'MACHINE GUN.

4 SHEETSSHEET 3.

FILED MAR. 5- 1918 Feb. 13, 1923.

E. L. A. PAUMIER.

MACHINE GUN.

mm MAR.5,1918.

4 SHEETSSHEET 4.

Patented Feb. 113, i923.

EMILE LOUIS ALBERT PAUMIER, OF PARIS, FRANCE.

MACHINE GUN.

Application filed March 5, 1918; Serial No. 220,622.

To all who m 2'1 may concern:

Beit known that I, EMILE LOUIS ALBERT PAUMIER, a citizen of the Republic of France and a resident of Paris, F rance. engineer, have invented new and useful Improvements Relating to Machine Guns, which invention is fully set forth in the following specification.

This invention has for its object mechanism which allows a machine gun or twin machine guns to be operated by a driven shaft. The driven shaft may be the screw shaft of an aeroplane and in this case the invention allows fire to be so regulated that the bullets always pass between the blades of the screws or propellers.

The machine gun may be of any type, but is preferably a type in which the barrel has a short recoil.

The gun is operated, not by utilizing the energy of the explosion gases or that of the recoil, but as explained by an outside motor. It is therefore necessary to slightly modify the machine gun employed in such a manner that it is no longer automatic but is operat- 1 ed when required by the mechanism hereafter described which while operating the gun causes the firing of the bullet to depend on the position of the screw.

Broadly stated the invention comprises a shaft driven by the propelling engine of an aeroplane and mechanism actuated by said shaft for imparting motion to the movable parts of a machine gun at the proper time to efiect firing of the gun between the blades of the propeller.

In the accompanying illustrative drawings, Fi l is a sectional elevation of the cam shaft. Fig. 2 shows the cocking mechanism and the arrangement for disconnecting it; Fig. 3 is a section on the line Z-Z of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 shows the safety mechanism. Fig. 5 shows mechanism actuating the firing tumbler and Fig. 6 shows a cam shaft applied to a twin gun.

Fig. 7 is a diagrammatic view of the mechanism described applied to a machine gun of the Vickers type having a short recoll. Machine guns of this type comprise a movable breech block a, carrying a firing pin and sliding in a breech casing b, the breech block being connected by a connecting rod 0 to a crank d; the crank d is connecied to the movable barrel 6 b two recoil plates 7. A coiled spring not i-lustrated brings the breech block and the assemblage of movable parts to the front position. i

Fig. 8 is a plan of the screw showing at what moment it is advisable to fire.

Fig. 9 is a schematic view showing the mechanism of the present invention and the movable parts of the machine gun locked in extreme recoil position: and

Fig. 10 is a similar schematic view showing the same parts in the position occupied at the instant when the gun is fired.

The driven shaft which may be the screw shaft of an aeroplane or a shaft parallel to it and driven at the same speed as it is shown at 1 in Fig. 1; is connected to a cam shaft 2 at right angles to it by a connection which has the minimum of play, for example, a worm 4 driving a worm wheel 3.

The cam shaft 2 is carried by bearings,

5 and 5 formed on flanges 6 and 6 fixed beneath the gun breech. A cocking cam 8, a. safety cam 9 and a firing eccentric 10 are mounted and keyed to the shaft 2.

11, Fig. 2, is a spring which maintains a roller 12 mounted on the end of one of the arms of a cooking lever 13 in contact with the cam 8; the other arm 14; of the lever 13 bears against the forward surface of a roller 15 mounted at the end of the crank (Z. The roller 12 when raised by the cam 8 causes the assemblage of the movable parts to move real-wards and so moves the breech block. The fall of the roller 12 allows the coiled spring to move the movable parts forward and to close the breech.

As indicated in Fig. 3 the roller 12 is connected to the cocking lever 13 by a strap 16 provided with a security rlvet 17 of mild effected when the rear edge 9 of the screw blade h, Fig. 8, forms with the vertical plane containing the axis of the barrel '5 an angle of about 10. 9' is a sector showing the space for the passage of the bullets; estimating it at 20 there will remain in front of the forward edge 70 of the second blade Z a security sector of about 135. The

' coiled spring;

arrow m shows the direction of' motion of the screw. v 18, Fig. 4, is a roller on the end ofa bent lever 19 and maintained in contact with the cam 9 by a spring 2O. The arm 21 of the lever 19 whose end is cut at a sharp angle, enga es a notch formed beneath one of the recoi plates 7 and thus takes'the pull of the Once per rotation of the cam, the arm 21 movesdownwards and liberates the recoil plate to allow the movable breech block to close and the gun to fire.

The cooking lever 13 is pivoted at 7 and has an extension 29 which can be acted upon by an eccentric boss 28 on a handle 27 for innnobilizing the lever 13 exactly at the rear end of its travel; thus roviding means by which the rotation of t e drivlng shaft is prevented from always fully operating the cooking lever 13. To limit the downward movement of the handle 27 the stop 27 is provided.

The firin eccentric 10 and the safety lever 19 ma e such small movements that they may be actuated without inconvenience. It is well, however, to allow some small )lay between the end of the arm 21 and the bottom of the notch on the recoil plate this can be effected by suitably eccentric boss 28.

The apparatus works as follows after the cams and eccentrics have been caref illy placed and immobilized on the shaft 2:

When the pilot wishes to fire, he first raises the handle 27 to allow the cooking lever 13 to retract intermittently the breechblock for firing purposes. With the parts positioned as shown in Fig. 7, rotation of cam shafts'2 causes cam 8 to rock pivoted lever 13 rearwardly, which by its enga ement with roller 15' on the projecting end 0 crank d moves the breech mechanism and barrel rearwardly against the tension of the recuperator spring (not shown). During rearward movement of the breech mechanism and barrel, the firing pin a is cocked in the usual manner and the arm 21 of lever shaping the 19 engages the'notch of recoil plate 7', the

tension of spring 20 causing rotation of lever 19 at the proper moment to effect this engagement.

The continued rotation of cam shaft 2 causes cam 9 to release arm 21 from engagement with the recoil plate, whereupon the recuperator spring returns the breech mechanism and barrel to the forward or firing position. Shortly after the parts reach the firing position, the cam 10 actuates the rod 23 to rock bent lever 25 and thereby release the sear 22 from engagement with the tumbler, whereby the firing pin is operated to fire the gun. It will, of course, be understood that, during the operations above described, the gun is loaded and the empty cartridge case ejected by the usual well plane. A

known mechanism. After firing, the pilot a ain moves the handle 27 to lock the movale parts in the recoil position and so I Side of the plane of symmetry of the aeroighting collimator 31 is fixed in this plane. The cam shaft 2 is in this case carried by four flanges forming below each gun two casings 32, 32 each containing a cocking cam 8, 8 a safety cam 9, 9 and a firing eccentric 10, 10 3 is the worm wheel gearing with the shaft of the screw.

In the one barrel gun it is advantageous to so select the sizes of the gearings that the gun fires a shot at each turn of the screw; in this manner if the motor turns at 1200 revolutions a minute, the gun will fire 600 rounds in the same time.

' In the twin gun the'arrangement is usually such that the cams control fire alternately from left to, right; thus a shot will be fired at each second revolution of the screw and the fuselage of the machine will not be subjected to too violent strain.

Claims:

1. In a rapid-fire gun mounting for and I planes, the combination of a breech-block spring-pressed to firing position, a shaft' planes, the combination of a breech-block.

spring-pressed to firing position, a shaft driven by the propelling engine of the aeroplane in synchronous relation to the propeller shaft thereof, acam on the driven 7 shaft, and a pivoted lever oscillated by the cam to retract intermittently "the breechblock to recoil position against the action of its spring, the rotative movements of the two shafts being synchronized so that the intervals between the propeller blades register with the line of fire on the return of the breech-block to firing position.

3. In a rapid-fire gun mounting for aeroplanes, the combination -of a breech-block springressed to firing position, a shaft driven y the propelling engine of the aeroplane in synchronous relation with the propeller shaft thereof, mechanism actuated by a said driven shaft to retract intermittently the breech-block to recoil position against the action of its spring, and mechanism operated by said driven shaft to actuate the firing device on return of the breech-block to, firing position, the rotative movements of the two shafts being synchronized so that the intervals between the propeller blades register with the line of fire at the time of discharge.

4. In a rapid-fire gun mounting for aeroplanes, the combination of a breech-block spring-pressed to firing position, a shaft driven by the propelling engine of the aeroplane in synchronous relation with the propeller shaft thereof, a cam on the driven shaft, a pivoted lever oscillated by said cam to retract intermittently the breech-block to recoil position against the action of its spring, a second cam on-the driven shaft, and a second pivoted lever oscillated by said second cam to actuate the firing device on return of the breech-block to firing position,

the rotative movements of the two shafts be-' ing synchronized so that the intervals between the propeller blades register with the line of fire at the time of discharge.

5. In a rapid-fire gun mounting for aeroplanes, the combination of a breech-block spring-pressed to firing position, a shaft driven by the propelling engine of the aeroplane in synchronous relation with the propeller shaft thereof, a cam on the driven shaft, a pivoted lever oscillated by said cam to retract intermittently the breech-block to recoil position against the action of its spring, a second cam on the driven shaft, a second pivoted lever oscillated by the second cam to actuate the firing device on return of the breech-block to firing position, a third cam on the driven shaft, and a third pivoted lever oscillated by the third cam to release the safety catch of the breech-block preliminary to complete closing of the latter, the rotative movements of the two shafts being synchronized so that the intervals between the propeller blades register with the line of fire atthe time of discharge.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification.

EMILE LOUIS ALBERT PAUMIER.

Witnesses:

GASTON DE MESTRAL, CHAS. P. PREBSLEY. 

